How many Card-Programmed Electronic Calculators (CPC) did IBM deliver?

A

Customer deliveries of the CPC began in late 1949, at which time more than 20 had been ordered by government agencies and laboratories and aircraft manufacturers. Nearly 700 CPC systems were delivered during the first-half of the 1950s.

Q

How much did it cost to rent an IBM 1440 and when did IBM discontinue selling it?

A

The basic system, using the interchangeable disk packs, rented for about $2,600 monthly. The 1440 was withdrawn from marketing in February 1971.

Q

In addition to its innovative disk storage packs, what other technological features were built into the IBM 305 RAMAC?

A

Besides the data packs, the 1440 contained the following other technological improvements: a card read-punch that used the solar cell principle to read information from punched cards directly into the central processing unit with increased accuracy and reliability; a printer equipped with five interchangeable type bars for greater versatility; a console that contained the operating keys, dials and switches that permitted operator control over the system; and a central processing unit that had a core storage cycle of 11.1 millionths of a second.

Q

Were any other models of the 3081 announced following the initial introduction in 1980?

A

Other models of the 3081 were introduced in October 1981, September 1982, March 1983 and February 1984. All models were withdrawn from marketing in August 1987.

Q

What are some of the advantages and benefits of the IBM AS/400?

A

Among the product's attributes cited by IBM at the time of its introduction were the AS/400's integrated, state-of-the-art system; reliability; largest application library of any multi-user system in the industry; most productive system for developing applications in the industry; improved ease of use for both new and experienced users; unsurpassed connectivity with IBM systems, such as the System/370, System/36 and System/38; extremely fast processing (twice that of the high-end System/38 and five times that of the high-end System/36); adherence to IBM's Systems Application Architecture; ability to provide a total office solution; electronic customer support and online education. The AS/400 today remains one of IBM's most popular products -- with more than 650,000 systems shipped around the world.

Q

What can you tell me about the IBM 2361's memory?

A

The 2361 was the first IBM memory to use two-wire core storage to increase storage capacity, improve performance and reduce unit size. Cores were woven into each juncture of a screen-like mesh of wire to form a plane resembling a small window screen. Memory circuits were associated with core planes in the 2361 and included some 3,500 Solid Logic Technology modules and 35,000 high-current silicon diodes. Major feats in fabricating the 2361 included soldering and testing 180,000 connections, and welding and testing another 180,000 connections. The 2361 was withdrawn from marketing in April 1965.

Q

What can you tell me about the IBM RISC/6000 or RS/6000?

A

The RISC System/6000 (RS/6000) family, announced in February 1990, demonstrated huge leaps in technology in the quarter century following the debut of the System/360. Initially available in a series of nine high-performance workstations and servers, even the most powerful model (POWERserver 540) sat beside a desk rather than fill a large room as did the 360. The 540 processed 41 million instructions per second, making it five to 50 times more powerful than the most powerful of the early System/360 models. Its electronic logic circuitry had up to 800,000 transistors per silicon chip (compared with but one transistor per chip on the first 360). Its maximum memory size of 256 megabytes was 256 times more than was offered on the largest of the early 360 line and its internal disk storage capacity of 2.5 gigabytes was 25 times the capacity of the 24-inch diameter, 25-disk module of the IBM 2302 Disk Storage announced with the System/360 in April 1964.

Q

What did an IBM 7094 cost?

A

A typical 7094 sold for $3,134,500. IBM provided customers with a complete package of 7090/7094 programs, including FORTRAN, COBOL, input-output control system and sorting, without charge. The 7094 was withdrawn from marketing in 1969.

Q

What is notable about the IBM AS/400's debut?

A

When the Application System/400 (AS/400) was introduced in June 1988, it was the largest worldwide product announcement in IBM history. More than 100,000 customers, IBM business partners, consultants, analysts, vendors, reporters and IBM branch people in more than 140 locations were linked to the main product unveiling in New York City. Rolled out that day were six AS/400 models and more than 1,000 software packages. The AS/400 family at announcement offered a 10-fold performance range from the smallest to the largest model in the number of commercial transactions it could process per hour -- up to 45,000 in IBM benchmark tests.

Q

What is the IBM 3090?

A

The most powerful IBM computer of its time, the 3090 high-end processor of the IBM 308X computer series incorporated one-million-bit memory chips, Thermal Conduction Modules to provide the shortest average chip-to-chip communication time of any large general purpose computer, and the industry's most advanced operating systems. Announced in February 1985, the Model 200 (entry-level with two central processors) and Model 400 (with four central processors) IBM 3090 had 64 and 128 megabytes of central storage, respectively. At the time of announcement, the purchase price of a Model 200 was $5 million, and the machine was available in November 1985. The Model 400 was available only as a field upgrade from the Model 200 at a cost of $4.3 million beginning in the second quarter of 1987. A later six-processor IBM 3090 Model 600E, using vector processors, could perform computations up to 14 times faster than the earlier four-processor IBM 3084.

Q

What is the IBM Personal System/2 (PS/2)?

A

Introduced in April 1987 by IBM's Entry Systems Division, the Personal System/2 family of PCs originally featured four systems -- Models 30, 50, 60 and 80 -- in a range of eight configurations providing customers with a variety of performance, memory and storage options. The Model 30 was an Intel 8-megahertz system, with either two 720K diskette drives or one 720K diskette drive and a 20-megabyte fixed disk drive. At the high end of the family, the Model 80 was a floor-standing machine running at 16 megahertz, containing one megabyte of memory and featuring a 44 megabyte fixed disk drive. A second 44 MB fixed disk drive could be added. Prices ranged from $1,695 for the Model 30 with two diskette drives to $10,995 for the Model 80 with two fixed disk drives.

Q

What is the IBM RS/6000 SP?

A

IBM announced the next generation of its RISC-based high performance parallel computer -- the Scalable POWERparallel Systems SP2 -- in April 1994. The SP2 represented a new breed of information system which combined the numeric-intensive processing capabilities of scientific and technical computers with the storage and analysis strengths of commercial systems. Based on IBM's RISC System/6000 microprocessor technology and running AIX/6000, IBM's UNIX operating system, the SP2 could scale from four to 128 nodes, and offer significant flexibility in configuring the systems by combining nodes within a frame. Using a POWER2 processor and other options, a customer could obtain twice the processing power of the then current system, eight times greater memory and four times greater bandwidth. A 128-node system had a peak performance of 34 gigaFLOPS (equal to billions of calculations per second), 256 gigabytes (GB) of internal memory and 1,024 GB of internal disk storage.

Q

What is the IBM System/36?

A

When making its May 1983 debut, the System/36 was one of the easiest-to-use general purpose computers ever introduced by IBM. It combined data processing, business color graphics and office management functions in a low-cost computer for first-time and experienced users. The System/36 5360 system unit offered 128,000 to 512,000 characters of main storage and 30 million to 400 million characters of internal disk storage -- up to twice the maximum main storage provided by the earlier System/34. Specialized industry terminals which could be used with the System/36 included the IBM 3600 and 4700 finance communication systems, the IBM 5260 retail system, the IBM 5230 data collection system and the IBM 1255 magnetic character reader.

Q

What is the IBM System/38?

A

Under development since 1973 in IBM's General Systems Division laboratory in Rochester, Minn., the System/38 midrange computer was rolled out in October 1978 with many advanced features. These include a single-level store, object-oriented addressing and a high-level machine interface to the user. The System/38 had been designed to facilitate terminal-oriented, transaction-driven operations and to improve programmer productivity. The basic system included a central processing unit with main storage ranging between 524,288 and 1.572 million positions, 64.5 to 387.1 million positions of disk storage, a console keyboard/display, a diskette magazine drive and work station controllers for up to 40 directly attached IBM 5250 Information Display System devices. Depending on processor model, main storage cycle times were 600 or 1,100 billionths of a second.

Q

What was IBM's first Personal Computer?

A

The IBM Personal Computer, developed at the Information Systems Division's Boca Raton, Fla., facility, was announced in August 1981 as the company's "smallest, lowest-priced computer system designed for business, school and home." Selling for as little as $1,565, the PC used an Intel 4.77 megahertz processor and Microsoft's Disk Operating System. The machine offered memory capacities from 16K to 256K and either one or two diskette drives. An expanded system for business with color graphics, two diskette drives and a printer cost about $4,500. Many analysts have regarded the IBM PC as setting the industry standard for personal computers for both commercial and home users. The early models of the IBM PC were withdrawn from marketing in April 1982, and later models followed in December 1985.

Q

What was the 3850?

A

The "honeycomb" cell structure of the IBM 3850 Mass Storage System, introduced in 1974, stored small cartridges containing spools of magnetic tape. Each spool could store 50 million characters of information, and up to 472 billion characters could be economically filed in one 3850 system for online computer use.

Q

What was the 701C?

A

The IBM ThinkPad 701C was announced in March 1995 with a revolutionary TrackWrite keyboard that formed a comfortable, full-size, 85-key typing surface nearly two inches wider than the unit itself. The ThinkPad could be transformed into a full-function speakerphone, answering machine and fax machine, and, by using built-in infrared, could print documents and send files with no wires or cable connectors. It weighed 4.5 pounds and offered 360-, 540- and 720-million byte hard drives.

Q

What was the Automatic Sequence Controlled Calculator (ASSC)?

A

The Automatic Sequence Controlled Calculator (Harvard Mark I) was the first operating machine that could execute long computations automatically. A project conceived by Harvard University's Dr. Howard Aiken, the Mark I was built by IBM engineers in Endicott, N.Y. A steel frame 51 feet long and eight feet high held the calculator, which consisted of an interlocking panel of small gears, counters, switches and control circuits, all only a few inches in depth. The ASSC used 500 miles of wire with three million connections, 3,500 multipole relays with 35,000 contacts, 2,225 counters, 1,464 tenpole switches and tiers of 72 adding machines, each with 23 significant numbers. It was the industry's largest electromechanical calculator.

Q

What was the cost of the IBM 1401 and how many did IBM sell?

A

The monthly rental for a 1401 was $2,500 and up, depending on the configuration. By the end of 1961, the number of 1401s installed in the United States alone had reached 2,000 -- representing about one out every four electronic stored-program computers installed by all manufacturers at that time. The number of installed 1401s peaked at more than 10,000 in the mid-1960s, and the system was withdrawn from marketing in February 1971.

Q

What was the Card-Programmed Electronic Calculator?

A

The IBM Card-Programmed Electronic Calculator was announced in May 1949 as a versatile general purpose computer designed to perform any predetermined sequence of arithmetical operations coded on standard 80-column punched cards. It was also capable of selecting and following one of several sequences of instructions as a result of operations already performed, and it could store instructions for self-programmed operation. The Calculator consisted of a Type 605 Electronic Calculating Punch and a Type 412 or 418 Accounting Machine. A Type 941 Auxiliary Storage Unit was available as an optional feature. All units comprising the Calculator were interconnected by flexible cables. If desired, the Type 412 or 418, with or without the Type 941, could be operated independently of the other machines. The Type 605 could be used as a Calculating Punch and the punch unit (Type 527) could be operated as an independent gang punch.

Q

What was the Hollerith 070 Sorter?

A

The original Hollerith electric tabulating system did not have an adequate method for sorting cards. This became a problem in the 1900 agricultural census, so Herman Hollerith (1860-1929) developed an automatic sorter. The first one was a tabletop model with the bins arranged horizontally. Later, when his system was gaining favor commercially, Hollerith redesigned the sorter into a sturdier, vertical machine that would not take up too much space in small railroad offices. The 070 Vertical Sorting Machine of 1908 could operate at a rate of 250-270 cards a minute.

Q

What was the IBM 1403?

A

When introduced in October 1959, the 1403 Printer was a completely new development providing maximum throughput of forms and documents in printing data from punched cards and magnetic tape. The printer incorporated a swiftly moving horizontal chain (similar in appearance to a bicycle chain) of engraved type faces, operated by 132 electronically-timed hammers spaced along the printing line. The impact of a hammer pressed the paper and ink ribbon against a type character, causing it to print. The chain principle achieved perfect alignment of the printed line and greatly reduced the number of sets of type characters needed. The 1403 printer could produce over 230 two-line documents, such as checks, per minute or the equivalent of a printing speed of 4,800 lines per minute. The 1403 was withdrawn from marketing in February 1971.

Q

What was the IBM 1013?

A

Announced in October 1961, the 1013 Card Transmission Terminal transmitted data from punched cards at speeds up to 300 characters per second (cps) and punched received data into cards at a rate of 160 cps. When transmitting, data in the punched cards was photosensed and entered into buffer storage. Once there and under the control of the 1013's stored program, data could be added, deleted or sequentially stored for transmission. In addition, the 1013 automatically detected errors and retransmitted corrected data. It was withdrawn from marketing in January 1977.

Q

What was the IBM 1050?

A

The 1050 Data Communications System was a multipurpose, station or office-oriented data communication terminal system that was announced in March 1963 specifically for important data record keeping and transmission functions. It operated over established communication lines to provide rapid, dependable communications between remote locations and a central data processing site. The 1050 system consisted of the 1051 control unit, 1052 printer-keyboard, 1053 printer, 1054 paper tape reader, 1055 paper tape punch and 1056 card reader. These various components were withdrawn from marketing between February 1974 and June 1978.

Q

What was the IBM 1130?

A

The IBM 1130 Computing System was announced in February 1965 as the "lowest-priced stored program computer ever marketed by IBM." Capable of performing 120,000 additions a second, the system was offered for lease for as little as $695 a month and for sale at $32,280. The 1130 used microelectronic circuits employing IBM's Solid Logic Technology similar to those used by the IBM System/360. It was manufactured in San Jose, Calif., and Greenock, Scotland.

Q

What was the IBM 1301?

A

The 1301 Disk Storage Unit was announced in June 1961 with an ability to monitor as many as 280 million characters of information in a single system by making use of comb-like arms flying on layers of air. Compared with the innovative IBM RAMAC, the 1301 provided a thirteen fold increase in storage density and three times faster average access to information. The 1301 could be linked to any of five intermediate-to-large solid-state IBM computers (1410, 7070, 7074, 7080 and 7090) or shared by any two of them. One unit could store between 50 million and 56 million characters of information, depending on the computer to which it was connected. Up to five 1301s could be used in a single system. The 1301 was withdrawn from marketing in October 1970.

Q

What was the IBM 1401?

A

The all-transistorized 1401 Data Processing System placed such features as high-speed card punching and reading, magnetic tape input and output, high-speed printing, stored program and arithmetic and logical ability in the hands of smaller businesses that had previously been limited to using conventional punched card equipment. Announced in October 1959, the 1401 was equipped with ferrite-core memories having capacities of 1,400, 2,000 or 4,000 characters. The system could be configured to use punched-cards and magnetic tape, and could be used either as a stand-alone computer or as a peripheral system for larger computers. The 1401 processing unit could perform 193,300 additions of eight-digit numbers in one minute.

Q

What was the IBM 1402?

A

The 1402 Card Read-Punch could read card information into the IBM 1401 processing unit punch cards and separate them into radial stackers. The cards could be easily removed while the machine was running. Maximum speeds for the 1402 were 250 cards per minute for punching and 800 cards per minute for reading. Announced in October 1959, the 1402 was withdrawn from marketing in February 1971.

Q

What was the IBM 1405?

A

The 1405 Disk Storage Unit was introduced in October 1960. To improve on IBM's RAMAC technology, the 1405 engineers doubled two parameters -- tracks per inch and bits per inch of track -- to deliver a fourfold increase in capacity. The 1405 storage units were available in 25 and 50 disk models, with 10 million and 20 million characters each, respectively. The 1405 was used in Walnut, an information retrieval system that was developed for the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency and delivered in late 1962. Walnut was the first mechanized system that could feasibly store and search millions of pages of documents. The 1405 withdrawn from marketing in June 1970.

Q

What was the IBM 1440?

A

Introduced by IBM in October 1962 as "one of the most important new products we have ever developed," the 1440 Data Processing System was a low-cost compact electronic computer designed specifically for small and medium-size business firms. It incorporated a major achievement in the data storage technology of the time -- disk storage devices designed with interchangeable packs, each containing six magnetic memory disks for a combined storage capacity of nearly three million characters of information.

Q

What was the IBM 2361?

A

The IBM 2361 Core Storage Unit was introduced in April 1964 and built by IBM's Poughkeepsie, N.Y., manufacturing facilities with 16 times the capacity of any previous IBM memory. In each 2361, almost 20 million ferrite cores -- tiny doughnut-shaped objects, each about the size of a pinhead -- were strung in two-wire networks and packaged, with associated circuitry, into a cabinet only five by 2 ½ feet and less than six feet tall. The 2361's design provided for storage of 524,000 36-bit words and a total cycle time of eight microseconds in each memory.

Q

What was the IBM 301 (Type IV)?

A

The 301 (better known as the Type IV) Accounting Machine was the first card-controlled machine to incorporate class selection, automatic subtraction and printing of a net positive or negative balance. Dating to 1928, this machine exemplifies the transition from tabulating to accounting machines. The Type IV could list 100 cards per minute.

Q

What was the IBM 3033?

A

Designed as a successor to the System/370 Model 168, the 3033 Processor was announced in May 1977. It was half the size, consumed half the power, required half the cooling and was nearly twice as fast as the 168. IBM manufactured the 3033 in Poughkeepsie and Kingston, N.Y.; Montpellier, France; and Yasu, Japan. The 3033 was withdrawn in February 1985.

Q

What was the IBM 305 RAMAC?

A

IBM announced the 305 Random Access Memory Accounting Machine (RAMAC) on September 13, 1956, as a "revolutionary new product to accelerate the trend toward office and plant automation." It made "continuous accounting" or "in-line data processing" possible, whereby all affected records are adjusted immediately after a transaction occurs. The 305 system was built around a magnetic disk memory unit with a storage capacity of five million digits. Information in the form of magnetic spots was stored on both sides of 50 metal disks, arranged in a vertical stack which rotated at 1,200 revolutions a minute. An access arm moved rapidly up and down, reaching between the spinning disks to retrieve the stored data. After processing, the information obtained was reproduced by the printer unit or punched into IBM cards. RAMAC could record or recall information from magnetic disks in milliseconds and in any sequence.

Q

What was the IBM 3081?

A

The IBM 3081 Processor Complex joined the IBM product line in November 1980. It offered 16, 24 or 32 million characters of main storage and had 16 or 24 integrated channels. The 3081 used a new "dyadic" design in which two processors, each with its own assigned set of channels, shared main processor storage and operated under a single control program. It had a maximum aggregate data transfer rate of 72 million characters per second and could attach to most direct access storage devices used with other large IBM processors. An IBM 3081 Processor Complex, which included a processor, processor controller, power unit, coolant distribution unit, systems and operator's consoles, with 16 channels and 16 million characters of main storage, could be purchased at time of announcement for $4,046,240, while a 24 channel, 32 million character IBM 3081 Processor Complex could be purchased for $4.6 million.

Q

What was the IBM 3270?

A

The 3270 Information Display System was announced by IBM in May 1971. Developed at IBM's facility in Kingston, N.Y., the 3270 system brought new simplicity to the gathering and communication of information. It could be attached to a System/370 or System/360 Model 25 or larger. The 3270 system was withdrawn from marketing in October 1977.

Q

What was the IBM 3284?

A

Introduced in May 1971, the 3284 Hard Copy Printer was a cost-reduced printer that used the no-work wire matrix print head. A sprocket feed similar to that of a typewriter was used for paper feed along with a solenoid/ratchet mechanism. The 3284 ran at 40 characters per second. It was withdrawn from marketing in August 1982.

Q

What was the IBM 3380?

A

Originally announced in June 1980, the IBM 3380 Direct Access Storage was available in six models. Each unit could store up to 2.52 billion bytes and had an average seek time of 16 milliseconds and a data transfer rate of 3.0 megabytes per second. The 3380 used advanced film head technology, higher density and new controller logic to achieve greater reliability and improved environmental characteristics (less floor space, electrical power and heat dissipation than any previous IBM disk storage product on an equal capacity basis). Some models of the 3380 were withdrawn in October 1981 and May 1986, and newer models were announced in September 1987.

Q

What was the IBM 3705?

A

To reduce the load placed on host computers by network communications, IBM announced the 3705 Communications Controller in March 1972. It could coordinate transmission between a computer and remote terminals on up to 352 telephone lines -- twice the capacity of any previous IBM control unit. Equipped with its own small processor and memory capacity of up to 240K, it could be programmed to emulate prior transmission control devices and to perform many of the line management and data conversion tasks formerly handled by System/360 host computers. It operated with all models of the System/370, and almost all the terminal devices offered by IBM could be linked to the 3705. The 3705 was withdrawn from marketing in December 1985.

Q

What was the IBM 3890?

A

Announced in 1973, the 3890 Document Processor was designed to help banks to process and distribute more checks faster and with fewer errors. It could read and sort a minimum of 2,400 six-inch documents per minute, and could print a batch and identification number on each document to improve item control. Equipped with its own control and program storage, the 3890 could be linked directly to virtual storage models of IBM System/370 or used independently for fine sorting operations.

Q

What was the IBM 4341?

A

Announced in January 1979, the 4341 Processor provided high system performance for commercial, engineering, scientific and academic users of intermediate size System/370s and large System/360s. It was available in two model groups. Model Group 1 had an internal performance rate up to 3.2 times faster than the System/370 Model 138 and up to four times the processor storage capacity of the 138. Model Group 2 had an internal performance rate up to 1.8 times that of Model Group 1 and a processor storage capacity up to two times that of Model Group 1. The 4341 was withdrawn from marketing in February 1986.

Q

What was the IBM 4381?

A

Boasting of state-of-the-art technology, IBM launched the 4381 processor in September 1983 to reenforce the company's commitment to professional, engineering and scientific users. Available in Model Groups 1 and 2, the 4381 was developed in IBM's Endicott, N.Y., facility and manufactured in Endicott; Vallencia, Spain and Sumare, Brazil. The 4381 bridged the gap in the 1980s between IBM's intermediate 4300 processors and the larger 308X processors. Among its technology advances were high-density, 64-millimeter-square modules that contained a maximum of 36 Large Scale Integration chips each, achieving up to 25,000 circuits per module. Users could obtain up to 16 megabytes of memory with the 4381, and up to 12 input/output channels. The 4381 was withdrawn from marketing in February 1986.

Q

What was the IBM 5100?

A

Weighing approximately 50 pounds, the 5100 Portable Computer was announced in September 1975 to put computer capabilities at the fingertips of engineers, analysts, statisticians, and other problem-solvers. Available in 12 models providing 16K, 32K, 48K or 64K positions of main storage, the 5100 sold for between $8,975 and $19,975. A late-1960's computer with the equivalent capacity and performance of the 5100, would have been nearly as large as two desks and would have weighed about half a ton. The 5100 was withdrawn in March 1982.

Q

What was the IBM 550?

A

Introduced in 1930, the IBM 550 Automatic Interpreter was the first commercial IBM machine capable of sensing numerical data punched in cards and printing such data across the top of each card. The information to be printed could be placed in any sequence. The machine automatically interpreted at the rate of 75 cards a minute or 4,500 cards an hour. The feeding hopper had a capacity of 800 cards, and the stacker in which the interpreted cards were deposited had a capacity of 1,000 cards.

Q

What was the IBM 63?

A

Announced in August 1948, the Type 63 Card Controlled Tape Punch was able to read alphabetical and numerical information in IBM punched cards and perforate five-channel telegraphic tape with that data. (One roll of punched tape was the equivalent of approximately 1,500 cards.) The machine consisted of a card reading unit and a tape punching unit. The Type 63 was withdrawn from marketing in January 1972 -- after nearly a quarter-century in the IBM product line up.

Q

What was the IBM 650?

A

Announced as the IBM 650 Magnetic Drum Calculator in July 1953, the 650 became the most popular computer of the 1950s. It was operated by coded instructions stored on a magnetic drum, and was used to solve commercial or technical problems. The basic IBM 650 consisted of two units: IBM 650 Console Unit and IBM 655 Power Unit. The 650 was viewed as the foundation of a flexible and integrated "building block" data processing system. IBM machines could be added to the 650 to provide for punched card input-output, line printed output, magnetic tape input-output, high-speed magnetic core storage, indexing accumulators, and automatic floating-decimal arithmetic in various combinations. By the time the last IBM 650 was manufactured in 1962, nearly 2,000 of the machines had been delivered to customers -- the most of any electronic computer of that period.

Q

What was the IBM 6670?

A

IBM's Office Products Division introduced the 6670 Information Distributor in February 1979 as a versatile office information distributor that printed with a laser and received and transmitted documents electronically over ordinary telephone lines. The 6670 also linked word processing and data processing, printing computer-based information in typewriter-like quality originals using customized formats. It could print multiple sets of documents at speeds of up to 1,800 characters per second and could also function as a high-quality copier. The 6670 was withdrawn from marketing in August 1986.

Q

What was the IBM 701?

A

The 701 Electronic Data Processing Machines System, introduced in 1952, was IBM's first commercially available scientific computer and the first IBM machine in which programs were stored in an internal, addressable electronic memory. Using cathode ray tube (Williams tube) memory for speed and flexibility, the 701 could process more than 2,000 multiplications and divisions a second. From the 701 technology came not only the 702, 704, 705 and 709 computers but also a new orientation to the electronic stored-program computer.

Q

What was the IBM 7030?

A

The IBM 7030 Data Processing System -- or "Stretch" computer -- was delivered in April 1961, offering a performance that was 200 times faster than the IBM 701, 40 times faster than the IBM 709 and seven times faster than the IBM 7090. Although the 7030 was the industry's fastest computer in 1961, its performance was far less than originally predicted. IBM cut its price from $13.5 million to $7.8 million and offered the 7030 to only eight customers.

Q

What was the IBM 7094?

A

Announced in January 1962, the IBM 7094 Data Processing System was built at the company's Poughkeepsie, N.Y., plant. The system was designed for large-scale computing and to process complex scientific information at ultrahigh speed. With a memory reference speed of two microseconds (millionth of a second), the 7094 could in one second perform 500,000 logical decisions, 250,000 additions or subtractions, 100,000 multiplications or 62,500 divisions. The 7094 internally performed mathematical computations 1.4 to 2.4 times faster than the IBM 7090, depending on the technique used to solve problems. High-speed data tapes enabled the 7094 to accept and record data at speeds of up to 170,000 characters a second.

Q

What was the IBM 726?

A

The 726 Magnetic Tape Recorder, introduced in 1952 as IBM's first magnetic tape unit, could store 100 characters of information on one inch of tape and it could read and write information at the rate of 75 inches a second.

Q

What was the IBM 729 II?

A

Brought to market in September 1958, the 729 II Magnetic Tape Unit combined compact storage facilities and high-speed input/output operations for the IBM 1410 Data Processing System. Up to 20 tape units could be attached to the 1410. The 729 II had a read-write speed of 15,000 or 41,667 characters per second, a recording density of 200 or 556 characters to the inch, and a high-speed rewind capability of 1.2 minutes per 2,400 foot reel. When recorded information was no longer needed, the tape could be used to record and store new data; the write operation automatically erased old information. The 729 II was withdrawn from marketing in December 1971.

Q

What was the IBM Displaywriter System?

A

The IBM Displaywriter System was introduced in June 1980 to help users produce high quality documents while keying text at a productive, rough draft speed. Operators could automatically indent text, justify right margins, center, underscore and perform block commands. Documents could be stored and recalled for later review or revision. The system could check the spelling of approximately 50,000 common words and up to 500 technical terms or industry-unique words. The basic IBM Displaywriter consisted of a display station, that included a keyboard, along with a printer and a single diskette unit with a capacity of approximately 284,000 characters of information. With the growing acceptance of the IBM Personal Computer and its follow-ons, all models of the Displaywriter were withdrawn from marketing in April 1986.

Q

What was the IBM Enterprise System/9000 or ES/9000?

A

When the System/390 line was introduced in September 1990 as IBM's most comprehensive announcement of products, features and functions in more than a quarter century, it included the IBM Enterprise System/9000 family of 18 new processors. One measure of the announcement's breadth was that a total of 23 different IBM manufacturing and development sites around the world were involved in the roll-out. The new processor family provided significant price-performance gains and flexible growth options spanning a 100-fold performance range increase from the smallest (model 120) to the most powerful (model 900 six-way multiprocessor). The ES/9000s exploited new technologies, such as high-speed fiber optic channels with IBM's new ESCON architecture, ultra-dense circuits and circuit packaging that provided higher performance, extended supercomputing capabilities and twice the processor memory previously available.

Q

What was the IBM Series/1?

A

IBM introduced the new Series/1 computer in November 1976 for experienced data processing users, i.e., primarily for customers with programming capabilities and a need for multiple systems. It was a general purpose system that offered both communications and sensor-based capabilities, and it enabled users to attach a large number and variety of input and output units, including custom-built devices for special applications.

Q

What was the IBM System/34?

A

IBM's General Systems Division announced the System/34 in April 1977 as a low-cost approach to distributive data processing for businesses of all sizes. Centered on the IBM 5340 system unit, the System/34 used as many as eight workstations to provide timely access to current data and offered seven attachments, including the IBM 5251 Display Station. The System/34 was withdrawn in February 1985.

Q

What was the IBM System/360 Model 40?

A

Thomas J. Watson, Jr., said of the System/360 when it as introduced in April 1964 that it was "the most significant product announcement in IBM history." The word "system" was chosen to signify that the new product line was an interchangeable family of processors and peripherals with programming compatibility between all models. The Model 40 had a maximum memory of 256K, a cycle time of 2.5 microseconds and it transferred 16 bits per cycle. It was withdrawn from marketing in October 1977.

Q

What was the IBM System/360 Model 75?

A

The IBM System/360 Model 75 was introduced in April 1965, with the first delivery, to the NASA Institute of Space Study, following in January 1966. A powerful processor for integrated data management and processing, the Model 75 had a storage capability of up to 1,048,576 bytes. The machine had a memory cycle time of 750 nanoseconds, and it featured four-way interleaving of memory for faster effective access. (Interleaving is a technique in which the computer's memory is implemented by two or more electronically independent units, any one of which can be accessed while the others are still responding to previous requests.) The Model 75 was withdrawn from marketing in March 1977. A console from one of the machines has been preserved in the IBM Collection of Historical Computers.

Q

What was the IBM System/370 Model 148?

A

The Model 148 of the System/370 computer family was developed and manufactured at IBM's System Products Division facility in Endicott, N.Y., rolled out in June 1976 and first shipped during the first quarter of 1977. It enabled the users of intermediate-sized computers of the day to design larger, more efficient interactive, database and data communications applications. The machine had a maximum main memory of two million characters with internal performance speeds up to 43 percent faster than the earlier Model 145. The Model 148 was withdrawn from marketing in November 1983.

Q

What was the IBM Type 31?

A

Alphabetical duplicating key punches recorded alphabetic information in tabulating cards so that complete words and names, together with numerical data, could be later printed by an alphabetical accounting machine. The Type 31 Alphabetical Duplicating Punch was introduced by IBM in 1933, and it automatically ejected one card and fed another in 0.65 second. These machines were equipped with separate alphabetical and numerical keyboards. The alphabetical keyboard was similar to a conventional manual typewriter except that the shift, tab, backspace and character keys were eliminated, and a skip, release, stacker and "1" key were provided.

Q

What was the IBM Type 405?

A

Introduced in 1934, the 405 Alphabetical Accounting Machine was the basic bookkeeping and accounting machine marketed by IBM for many years. Important features were expanded adding capacity, greater flexibility of counter grouping, direct printing of entire alphabet, direct subtraction and printing of either debit or credit balance from any counter. Commonly called the 405 "tabulator," this machine remained the flagship of IBM's product line until after World War II.

Q

What was the IBM Type 80?

A

The Type 80 Electric Punched Card Sorting Machine was the first horizontal card sorter, introduced by IBM in 1925 to operate at almost twice the speeds of the older Type 70 vertical sorter. This machine used a direct magnetically operated control for the chute blades which replaced a much more complex mechanical device in the older machine. The Type 80 grouped all cards of similar classification (such as "sales by products") and at the same time arranged such classifications in numerical sequence. With 10,200 units on rental at the close of 1943, the Type 80 had the largest inventory for any machine at that time.

Q

What was the International Daily Dial Attendance Recorder?

A

Manufactured by IBM's International Time Recording Co. division in the 1930s, the daily attendance recorder came in three sizes -- for 50, 100 and 150 employees -- and with either a single or double drum. The double drum models had a capacity for two daily sheets which automatically positioned themselves for the current day's records. When one sheet was used, a new one moved into place and a new sheet could be substituted for the completed record at any time during the day. The single drum dial recorder required that the sheets be replaced after working time or before starting time in the morning.

Q

What was the International Ornamental Floor ("Grandfather") Type Master Clock?

A

A master clock was the controlling center of IBM's Self-Regulating Electric Time System, and it was the source of accurate time -- up to within 10 seconds a month of correct time -- for the various secondary time pieces, such as indicating clocks, attendance and job cost recorders, distributed throughout the system. The "Grandfather" style clocks, either No. 21 (spring-driven) or No. 31 (weight-driven), beat 60 times a minute, possessed self-winding movements and came finished in either red or brown mahogany. The clocks were marketed in the 1930s by the International Time Recording Company, an IBM division.

Q

What was the lease or rental cost for an IBM 305 RAMAC?

A

The monthly rental for a basic RAMAC was $3,200, of which $650 was for the disk storage unit, $1,625 for the processing unit and power supply, and $925 for the console, printer and card punch. More than a thousand of these vacuum tube-based computers were built before production ended in 1961.

Q

What was the price of an IBM ES/9000?

A

Basic purchase prices for the air-cooled processors of ES/9000 ranged from approximately $70,500 to $3.12 million. Basic purchase prices for the water-cooled models ranged from $2.45 million to $22.8 million.

Q

What was the price of an IBM System/36?

A

Purchase prices for typical System/36 configurations ranged from $34,000 for a basic system (with 128K characters of main memory, 30 million characters of disk storage, two displays, one printer and the operating system) to $176,000 for a large system (with 512K characters of memory, 400 million characters of disk storage, 26 displays, three printers, a tape drive, the operating system plus languages and utilities). Some models of the System/36 were withdrawn from marketing in September 1986.

Q

What was the price of an IBM System/38 and when was it marketed?

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The purchase price for a complete System/38 at announcement was $91,780. Deliveries of the product began in August 1979, and some models of the System/38 were withdrawn from marketing between March 1982 and June 1986.

Q

What was the PC Convertible?

A

The IBM PC Convertible (IBM 5140) of 1986 featured the latest in surface mount technology, which permitted electronic components to be mounted onto circuit boards, allowing more components to be placed in a smaller area. Weighing less than 13 pounds, the 5140 combined full computing power with portability and compatibility with other IBM Personal Computers.

Q

What was the SAGE computer?

A

Built by IBM in the 1950s, the Semi-Automatic Ground Environment (SAGE) computers were used in an early U.S. air defense system. When fully deployed in 1963, the system consisted of 27 centers throughout North America, each with a duplexed AN/FSQ-7 computer system containing over 50,000 vacuum tubes, weighing 250 tons and occupying an acre of floor space. SAGE was the first large computer network to provide man-machine interaction in "real time."

Q

What was the SSEC?

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The IBM Selective Sequence Electronic Calculator (SSEC), dedicated in 1948 by Thomas J. Watson, Sr., at IBM's headquarters at 590 Madison Avenue in New York City, was the first operating computer to combine electronic computation with stored instructions. The SSEC combined the speed of electronic circuits with a storage capacity of 400,000 digits. It had more than 12,000 vacuum tubes and 21,000 electromechanical relays. Data which had to be retrieved quickly were held in electronic circuits while the remainder were stored in relays and as holes in continuous card stock tapes.

Q

What was the Style 5011?

A

The Style 5011 was a ¼ horsepower electric coffee mill manufactured in the 1920s and early 1930s IBM's Dayton Scale Company -- formerly, the Computing Scale Company of America and later, an IBM division -- and was priced at about $135.

Q

What was the Style 5117?

A

The Style 5117 was a ½ horsepower meat chopper offered by IBM's Dayton Scale Division in the late-1920s.

Q

What was the System/370 Model 145?

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Introduced in September 1970, the Model 145 was the first IBM computer to have a main memory made entirely on monolithic circuits on silicon chips (previous 370 models used magnetic core main memories). Its system storage ranged from 112K to 512K, twice that available with the IBM System/360 Model 40 . It operated at speeds up to five times the Model 40's and up to 11 times the Model 30's. Model 145 users were able to run their System/360 programs with little or no reprogramming. Purchase prices for the Model 145 ranged from about $705,775 to $1,783,000. The Model 145 was withdrawn from marketing in November of 1971.

Q

What was the Type 71?

A

Introduced in 1928, the IBM Type 71 Vertical Sorter automatically grouped cards of similar classification and at the same time arranged such classifications in a numerical sequence. It was equipped with 12 pockets, corresponding to the 12 punching positions on a card, with a capacity of 80 cards each at a speed of 150 cards a minute.

Q

What was the TCM?

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The IBM-developed TCM, used in large-scale IBM 3081 and other computers, was the industry's densest and most efficient logic packaging in the 1980s. One module could contain up to 132 circuit chips and had the processing power equivalent to that of a midrange System/370 computer of the 1970s. The water-cooled TCM had the shortest average chip-to-chip communication time of packaging in any general-purpose computer.

Q

What was the Type 077?

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Introduced in 1937, the Type 077 collator fed and compared two sets of punched cards simultaneously to match or merge them. While doing so, the collator could separate the cards which matched from those that did not, making it possible to pull or file the cards automatically. The Type 077 was withdrawn in November 1957.

Q

What was the Type 401?

A

The 401, introduced in 1933, was an early entry in a long series of IBM alphabetic tabulators and accounting machines. It was developed by a team headed by J. R. Peirce and incorporated significant functions and features invented by A. W. Mills, F. J. Furman and E. J. Rabenda. The 401 added at a speed of 150 cards per minute and listed alphanumerical data at 80 cards per minute.

Q

What was the Type 552?

A

The Type 552 alphabetic interpreter was announced in 1937. It translated the holes punched in IBM cards and printed the corresponding numerical and alphabetic data across the face of the card while processing 60 cards per minute. The Type 552 was withdrawn in December 1957.

Q

What were some of the features of the IBM Series/1?

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The Series/1 consisted of 19-inch rack-mountable data processing units. It initially was available with two processors: a Model 3, ranging in memory size from 16K to 64K, and a Model 5, ranging from 16K to 128K. In addition to the processors, the Series/1 also offered at announcement a fixed disk storage unit containing 9.3 million bytes of storable space; a diskette unit able to store either up to 250,000 or up to 500,000 bytes on one- or two-sided diskettes, respectively; a matrix printer which provided 120 character per second bi-directional capability; a display station; a sensor Input/Output unit; an I/O expansion unit to attach additional devices; various communications features; and OEM attachment features. Various processors and peripherals of the Series/1 were withdrawn from marketing between 1983 and 1987.

Q

What were some of the IBM 650's features?

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Some of the 650's features as described in IBM publications of the time were: Magnetic Drum Memory -- 20,000 digit (2,000 word) or 10,000 digit (1,000 word); Stores data and instructions governing proper operation for each step in a procedure; Automatic table look-up; Console permits visible inspection of any machine location and altering of instructions; Discrepancies automatically detected and indicated on a visible panel through programming.

Q

What were some of the technological features of the IBM RISC/6000 or RS/6000?

A

The RS/6000 family achieved its premium performance with three major technical advances: a new superscalar processor capable of executing multiple instructions in a single cycle; the industry's most advanced Reduced Instruction Set Computer (RISC) -- pioneered by IBM -- floating-point processor for numeric-intensive applications, such as quantitative analysis; and optimized 3-D graphics capabilities for complex applications, such as visualization and mapping.